Fillet Steaks!

[Weltchy]

Cook fillet like they do in most top class restaurants, using the Pan to Oven method. Depending on how you want it cooked, the timings will vary (And are off the top of my head), however....

This is for Medium Rare (More rare than medium)

Whack your Hob on Full and use a heavy based pan for best results. Add small amount of oil and wait for it to start smoking. Sear the steak for about 1 or 2 minutes on either side.

Remove the pan from the hob and place into a pre-heated oven on around 200 for about 8 minutes. Ensure that the steaks do not touch each other. Remove from oven and wrap in tin-foil for a further 10 minutes to allow the juices to distribute around the steak.

[Lucifer Box]

LB - my fillets are very thick. And I have a griddle. Will they burn on the outside before the middle is warmed? (I like mine medium well and MR SA likes his medium rare!)

No, the hot pan will seal the outside quickly to prevent the juices escaping and the thin layer of olive oil will protect the meat from burning.

It's the resting time afterwards that warms the middle up, not the cooking in the pan. If your steaks are very thick, let them rest on a warmed plate for five or even ten minutes (loosely covered with foil to trap the heat in).

The only real way to estimate how well done your steak is is the poke test. Medium rare will be more "give" than "resistance" and medium well is more "resistance" than "give". I would guesstimate 2-3 minutes per side for medium rare and 3-4 minutes for medium well. Keep poking it all the time - as soon as it starts firming up it's medium rare and give it about another minute for medium well. Both would be overdone for me, rare is as far as I like to go, but it's different strokes for different folks of course.

[DaveB]

Thanks everyone!!

LB - my fillets are very thick. And I have a griddle. Will they burn on the outside before the middle is warmed? (I like mine medium well and MR SA likes his medium rare!)

Thats why you leave them to stand for a couple of minutes after cooking, it lets the heat penetrate to the middle without getting the outside over cooked. Sitck them on a plate somewhere warm, but not hot, you dont weant them cooking any more. The juices that run off while they are standing can go back in the pan with a splash of red wine. Reduce hard on a high heat untill it starts to thicken and pour over the meat.

As a quick guide to how well it is cooked you can use the rule of thumb, no pun intended.

Press your forefinger against your thumb as if you were pinching something, but dont press hard.. Press the ball of your thumb with your other forefinger. The firmness matches a very rare steak. Use the Index finger + Thumb = Medium Rare, 3rd finger = Medium, little finger = well done.

[rootsnall]

There are lots of ways of being miserable, but there's only one way of being comfortable, and that is to stop running round after happiness. If you make up your mind not to be happy there's no reason why you shouldn't have a fairly good time..

Might keep that one. Who said it ?

[Lucifer Box]

Might keep that one. Who said it ?

DaveB I think, although it was probably Spartacus really.

[SallyAnne]

So why not PM them?

Because, as proven in this thread, sometimes other people have very helpful and valuable things to add.

Except your good self obviously.

[SallyAnne]

Cook fillet like they do in most top class restaurants, using the Pan to Oven method. Depending on how you want it cooked, the timings will vary (And are off the top of my head), however....

This is for Medium Rare (More rare than medium)

Whack your Hob on Full and use a heavy based pan for best results. Add small amount of oil and wait for it to start smoking. Sear the steak for about 1 or 2 minutes on either side.

Remove the pan from the hob and place into a pre-heated oven on around 200 for about 8 minutes. Ensure that the steaks do not touch each other. Remove from oven and wrap in tin-foil for a further 10 minutes to allow the juices to distribute around the steak.

We have a winner! That sounds awesome!!!!

I'm printing this out and doing it (along with LB's seasoning).

You guys rock - cheers!

[DaveB]

Might keep that one. Who said it ?

A Lady by the name of Edith Wharton. NOvelist and the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize.

I hadn't realized I'd missed the acknowledgement off it.

[SandyDown]

I have a lean mean fat grilling machine that I use to grill steaks/ chicken and salmon fillets, it grills the meat really fast and drains the fat-dripping… but what do I do I when serving the fillet I pour the fat dripping back on it :lol

I do like my steak very well done and I do prefer flash frying with sesame oil (frying beef in sesame oil tastes soooo nice.

LB thanks for the tip re putting stock in the pan and the kind of beef steak to buy – I love cooking and like to share tips… actually sometimes I spend the whole weekend cooking all kind of dishes and freezing them, last time I forgot to label them :lol , so this week when getting things to eat its a surprise !!

[Churchill]

I do like my steak very well done and I do prefer flash frying with sesame oil (frying beef in sesame oil tastes soooo nice.

HTF do you flash fry something until it's well done?